New Skoda Octavia facelift kicks off at under £27k and you can order now
Skoda’s award-winning best-seller is given fresh technology and a more powerful vRS model
The Skoda Octavia has been around for 28 years and in its current fourth-generation it’s one of our favourite cars, winning our Car of the Year award in 2021. Despite its sales success as Skoda’s most popular model, it's been facelifted for 2024.
Still offered in hatchback and estate bodystyles, the new Skoda Octavia will start at £26,775, but the first trim level available will be the creatively named ‘First Edition’ priced at £32,975. The First Edition gets matrix headlights, a rear view camera, a table holder on the back of the front seats, adaptive cruise control, turn assist, 17-inch alloy wheels and Skoda’s Lounge Design Selection for the cabin. The First Edition will arrive with customers in June, followed by the rest of the range - made up of SE Technology, SE L, SportLine and the performance-focused range-topping vRS.
Skoda Octavia: pricing and specifications
The entry-level SE Technology model gets a new 13-inch infotainment display (the same as the one found in the newly facelifted Volkswagen Golf) which has been made standard across the range. This is combined with the Virtual Cockpit display for the driver. Other standard-fit features include 16-inch alloy wheels, LED front and rear lights, heated front seats, sat-nav, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, plus faster wireless phone charging.
Keyless go, folding and heated door mirrors and a new ‘Turn Assist’ sensor have been added. The ‘Loft Design’ interior trim selection is offered on SE Technology cars with the ‘Lodge’ design available as an option.
SE L is next and it starts from £31,250. On top of the SE Technology kit it gets 17-inch wheels, animated indicators in the lights, ‘Lounge Design’ selection for the interior with microsuede and artificial leather or an option to fit ‘Suite Black Design’. A two-spoke heated steering wheel is added, along with a heated windscreen, adaptive cruise control, lane assist plus, keyless entry with walk-away locking and an electronic bootlid.
As before, the SportLine adds some exterior tweaks for a sportier look. Starting at £32,255 it features a bespoke ‘SportLine Design’ interior with sports seats, metallic paint, 18-inch wheels, sports suspension with a 15mm ride height drop and revised steering which Skoda claims delivers “a suitably sporting driving experience”.
Pricing is still yet to be announced for the hot vRS model, although we expect it to cost more than the £35,245 Skoda charged for the old model. It gets 19-inch alloy wheels, LED matrix headlights and a vRS Design Selection interior which is bespoke to the model. Predictive adaptive cruise control, vRS engine sound and an electronically operated bootlid are standard.
Skoda Octavia: powertrains and performance
Skoda has tweaked the Octavia’s engine line up slightly for the 2024 update. There are five options, made up of three petrol and two diesel engines. The petrol range kicks off with the 1.5-litre four-cylinder, with the old 1.0-litre three-cylinder ditched. The 114bhp 1.5 is exclusive to SE Technology. A more powerful 148bhp version of the same petrol unit comes on SE L models with both engines offered with six-speed manual transmission or a seven-speed DSG with mild-hybrid technology.
The Octavia vRS now has 262bhp (up from 242bhp) so we expect a drop in its 6.8-second 0-62mph time. There’s a sports exhaust now with black pipes and the engine’s software has been tweaked to provide a ‘more powerful sound’, says Skoda.
Diesel power is retained and comes in two forms - a 2.0-litre TDI four-cylinder with 114bhp or 148bhp with the more powerful version offered with a seven-speed DSG automatic. Every powertrain option is available for both the hatchback and estate.
Skoda Octavia: exterior and interior
It might look like a rather mild facelift visually, but the new Octavia gets reshaped bumpers front and rear with SE Technology and SE L models receiving a new chrome strip. The LED headlights are a new design and they incorporate Skoda’s ‘crystalline elements’ for the first time. There’s also revised lower air intakes to complete the Octavia’s new front-end look. Overall, the Octavia is lengthened by 9mm on both the hatch and Estate.
Practicality remains the same however, with a boot capacity of 600 litres for the hatch and 640 litres for the estate. With the seats folded down these figures rise to 1,555 litres and 1,700 litres respectively.
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